General Board of Review

Article 11. The Supreme Judiciary

370. There shall be a judicial council to be known as the Board of Review whose number of members, qualifications, terms of office, and method of election shall be determined by the General Conference.

375. The Board of Review shall have authority to:

(1) Determine the constitutionality of any act of the General Conference upon appeal of the General Superintendent(s), or one-fifth of the members of the General Conference.

(2) Hear and determine any appeal from the decisions of the General Superintendent(s) as to the constitutionality of an action by a district or upon a point of Church law.

(3) Hear and determine the legality of any action by any General Church board upon appeal of one-third the members thereof, or by request of the General Superintendent(s).

(4) Settle questions in dispute between districts upon appeal by a two-thirds vote of a district that claims it has a grievance against another district.

(5) Determine the validity of any complaints against resources used in the course of study or in our schools.

(6) Settle and determine the legality of issues arising between a district and the General Conference.

380. A decision of the Board of Review shall be final unless the General Conference votes to overrule the same by a two-thirds vote of those present and voting.

F. General Board of Review

2070. Members. The General Board of Review is the appellate body for those who appeal the decisions of a general judicial committee and the judicatory for those who are subject to General Church jurisdiction (370; 1655:37). The General Board of Review shall consist of nine members, five of whom shall be ordained ministers and four of whom shall be lay members who meet the leadership qualifications (260-268; 558) of The Wesleyan Church.

(1) Their term of office shall be for four years. They shall serve from the close of the session of the General Conference at which they are elected until the close of the next session of the General Conference or until their successors are elected and qualified.

(2) A member of the General Board of Review may not at the same time be a member of the General Board.

(3) The General Conference shall elect by majority vote the members of the General Board of Review, from nominations presented by the Committee on Special Nominations. Additional nominations may be made from the floor of the General Conference (1580:2; 1590:18).

Members of the General Board of Review shall recuse themselves in the case of conflict of interest. Whenever a member is disqualified, the chair shall appoint an alternate for the hearing of that particular case (Gen. Bd. Policy on Ch. Disc. 5405), provided that such appointment shall maintain the membership of the Board as five ordained ministers and four lay members who meet the leadership qualifications.

2075. Alternates. The General Conference shall elect, in the same manner described in 2070:3, four ordained ministers and three lay members who meet the leadership qualifications (260-268; 558) to serve as alternate members of the General Board of Review, with the same qualifications (2070:2) and term of office (2070:1) as the members (1590:18). (Duties, powers, and procedures of the General Board of Review are located in the General Board Policy for Church Discipline and Ministerial Restoration.)